Trying to get my printout to match display

[EdwardMH]

I am trying to calibrate my Computer monitor (Apple Studio Display 5K) AND Epson SC-F570 sublimation printer/paper profile for photo editing as my printouts are looking way different/darker than whats on my monitor.


     I bought a Calibrite ColorChecker Display Plus (Colorimeter?) for the monitor and if possible my OLED TV’s to replace my older i1 Display 3 that has been firmware locked to only work on the Chromapure software so not able to use with its native i1 software and a ColorChecker Studio (Spectrophotometer?) for the camera/printer profiling.

     Can the ColorChecker Studio be used to do a Meter Correction for the ColorChecker Display Plus in the calibration software?

I have a VERY old 2010 i1 Pro system for monitors and printer calibration  but when I bought it I never used it more than 4 times on monitors and TV’s with the ColorHCFR. According to the spec sheet in the bag it was supposed to be calibrated in 2011 but it has NEVER been calibrated.
Is this device still any good, should I get it professionally calibrated or replace it with the latest version, OR will the ColorChecker Studio be good enough?

I also have a Datacolor Spyder X Pro but most reviews said the ColorChecker Display Plus was better and I am trying to start a sublimation busines printing wildlife photos and pet photos on glass and aluminum so I want to learn to get my colors as perfect as possible.

[dgberg]

Dye sublimation is what we do.
What software are you printing from?
What are your color management and paper settings?
Finally you must press to see your final color, you cannot compare anything to the unpressed print.
If printing textile use the Epson icc profile for textiles. Dtg has four very good profiles you can download.
Start with proper color management settings and most likely you will be spot on.
Make sure you have selected plain paper. Anything else especially enhanced matte will create a much darker print then you want.
All the things you mention in your post are most likely not the issue.

[digitaldog]

I am trying to calibrate my Computer monitor (Apple Studio Display 5K) AND Epson SC-F570 sublimation printer/paper profile for photo editing as my printouts are looking way different/darker than whats on my monitor.

Why are my prints too dark?
Why doesn’t my display match my prints?
A video update to a written piece on subject from 2013
In this 24 minute video, I'll cover:

Are your prints really too dark?
Display calibration and WYSIWYG
Proper print viewing conditions
Trouble shooting to get a match
Avoiding kludges that don't solve the problem

High resolution: http://digitaldog.net/files/Why_are_my_prints_too_dark.mp4
Low resolution: https://youtu.be/iS6sjZmxjY4

Oh, and lose the Spyder....

[EdwardMH]

Dye sublimation is what we do.
What software are you printing from?
What are your color management and paper settings?
Finally you must press to see your final color, you cannot compare anything to the unpressed print.
If printing textile use the Epson icc profile for textiles. Dtg has four very good profiles you can download.
Start with proper color management settings and most likely you will be spot on.
Make sure you have selected plain paper. Anything else especially enhanced matte will create a much darker print then you want.
All the things you mention in your post are most likely not the issue.

I spent 20+ min replying with my print settings and somehow lost the post when I tried to add a photo. I will try again.
“What Software are you printing from?”
I mainly use Affinity Photo, but had the same issues with Photoshop.

“What are your color management and paper settings?”
Computer Mac Studio 64GB ram, 2TB hard drive, CPU 10-Core, GPU 32-Core
Printer: Epson SC-F570
Print Settings for Affinity Photo
Presets: Default
Copies: 1
(downward printing arrow): Same as Paper Size
Output Size: US Letter
Paper Source: Roll Paper
Roll Paper Width 17 inch (432 mm)
Media Type: Use Printer Settings (DS Transfer General Purpose/Rigid
Select Target: Off (No Color Adjustment)
Color: Color
Color Mode: Off (No Color Management)
Level: Quality (Sometimes Max Quality)
             √ High Speed
                 Finest Quality: Unchecked (Sometimes Checked)
Layout:
No border
Two-Sided: Off
Reverse page orientation: OFF
Flip Horizontal On and off depending on if printing for under glass products or on top of substrate.

Color Matching:
ColorSync: I tried the Epson icc, and the calibrated one I made. (I have also tried Epson Color Controls)
Advance: Auto Rotate: ON, Print Page Line and Save Paper Roll: OFF (Save paper sometimes ON)
I even tried making a PDF preview and printing that and while not perfect it was a lot closer to the screen look but a tad darker.

I mostly want to make these Pet Memorials.

And a side note having to do all those match questions to post is nerve racking lol.

[EdwardMH]

I have already wasted 7 prints trying to figure this all out.

Since the Printer is CMYK (No White can this be part of the issue)?

When setting up a new job I make a custom page 0.25-0.50” larger than my substrate
DPI 300
image Placement policy: Default at Prefer Embedded (No clue what that is)
Color Format RGB/16 (I was told minimum RGB/8
Color Profile defaults to my Epson SC-F570 General Purpose/Rigid (I have tried sRGB as well)
Transparent background is OFF
Margins not used.

I also tried making glass cutting board designs and the first one came out ok a tad dark then a few days later everything printed with a greenish tint. Thats when I started suspecting icc profiles, but I am lost what to choose. I always thought you needed a profile for every paper, or every substrate pressed but I am just starting to learn the ColorChecker Studio printer profiler.

[dgberg]

This is the color management pages I was looking for from you. Top Photoshop and the bottom from my Affinity Designer.
Do you have Photoshop Manages Color chosen and the correct icc profile.
Having no white is not an issue when your substrate is white.
Choose the rigid profile for metals, glass and all of those type substrates.
Textile profile for all your fabrics.

[EdwardMH]

I have yet to actively use photoshop, it is installed, but currently my mai design software is Affinity photo, I will get screen shots of settings soon as I can. I returned the Apple Studio display monitor today and have to save another $300 to afford its replacement. I am looking for a monitor that can be mechanically calibrated, the Studio Display is software adjusted.

[dgberg]

Affinity is fine but you need to select color sync and choose your icc profile. Choose plain paper for now and print.
Before you print make sure your image looks properly exposed on your histogram. (This is where it is super important your monitor is calibrated.)
After pressing find some fabric polyester scraps to test print. Do "NOT" judge anything before pressing.
 After pressing you can then compare. Dye sub paper prints can be so far off in color and brightness that you need to press first to get accurate colors.
Many in our dye sub forum have reported that they use the textile profile for both type substrates. That it gives better results for both. Do your own tests.
Takes some time and effort to nail this down but once you have it you will be good to go.

Side note. Green colorcast can be under cooked. Brown is over cooked. A matter of time temp and pressure.

[EdwardMH]

Good to know about the color being green if undercooked, sadly this time it looked fine on screen but not only the press looked greenish instead of brown so did the exported .jpg files I saved as design examples. But this is when I suspected icc profiles because it started after my first attempt to calibrate the monitor. I think I was supposed to select the icc profile the calibration made?

[dgberg]

No your calibration profile is probably your screen profile. Just select one of the two icc profile downloaded with your driver.
Photoshop manages color with textile or hard substrate icc profile with color management off. These are the only color management settings you should be using for now.
All this other stuff is complicating things way too much.

What substrate are you pressing to? Time temp and pressure.

[EdwardMH]

Ok, TY, I just thought if I calibrated the monitor and printer profile then the old profiles that came with the monitor were no longer viable. I will stop trying to calibrate them and reset monitor back to factory setting and just try to figure our what color changes to make in photoshop and affinity photo when I make my designs colors press lighter.

[dgberg]

Are you using the proper icc profile with colorSync on.
I would try one with Photoshop and the correct icc profile.
You should not have to adjust any of your colors to get good color.
A day here for a one day dye sub workshop would have you up to speed pronto.